Defining 'American' in a Changing Nation
Setup
As the US ceases to be a white majority country (a demographic milestone we’re expected to reach by 2020), how will we as a society define what it means to be American — and who gets to decide? With increasing backlash against those seen as not belonging, how do we advance a national dialogue on American identity that considers the increasingly diverse and complex makeup of our society as well as the values we want to ascribe to as a country? What are the criteria for determining who is seen as American, and how do those criteria play into our perceptions of who belongs? What might alternative criteria include?
Speakers
-
Eric LiuCEO of Citizen University -
Alex WagnerCo-host of Showtime’s “The Circus” -
Abigail Golden-VazquezExecutive Director of The Aspen Institute’s Latinos and Society Progr... -
Mohamed Abdel-KaderExecutive Director of the Aspen Institute Stevens Initiative -
Erik StegmanExecutive Director, Center for Native American Youth, The Aspen Instit...
- 2018 Festival
- USA
Explore More
USA
Meet Patience Lee, a 2023 Aspen Ideas: Health Fellow who’s building cultural awareness into mental health support services for unaccompanied refugee children in the United Sta...
Meet Nathan Chomilo, a 2023 Aspen Ideas: Health Fellow who’s incorporating community collaboration and racial equity into Minnesota’s Medicaid policy development.
The pandemic put into stark relief deeply-ingrained gender roles in society, as the burden of unpaid care fell to millions of women who left the workforce. Yet the past years...
Of course, Black history shouldn’t just be a month-long nod on our yearly calendar — it is inextricable from American history and fundamental to the very soul of our nation an...
Politics are a frenzy right now, with bombshell headlines dropping so often that it’s hard to know what to focus on. Even when you can cut through the noise, what you hear is...
From the Supreme Court's ruling on abortion rights to public health's role in addressing gun violence to the devastating human toll of the war in Ukraine, this year's Aspen Id...
From blockchain to back to school and virus-hunting to bridging divides, speakers at the 2021 Aspen Ideas Festival addressed issues in a new kind of world—one touched, and cha...
The highest court often seems distanced from our day-to-day lives, but the rulings that come out of the Supreme Court are woven into the fabric of the nation. Though it aims t...
Gen-Z for Change's Aidan Kohn-Murphy on youth-led movements, his advice for young activists, and why it's impossible to lose hope.
